Después de Act I

En este capítuloNCR Ambassador Dennis Crocker asks the Courier to win the Boomers' support; the Courier recovers a B-29 bomber from Lake Mead so that Pearl's Boomers will fight for the NCR.

On the NCR path the Courier acts as a private contractor. Ambassador Crocker sends them to Nellis Air Force Base to win the Boomers, who agree to help only after the Courier recovers a lost B-29. In Freeside, the Courier resolves the conflict between the Kings and NCR citizens.

Colonel Moore then asks the Courier to neutralise threats: the Great Khans, the Omerta crime family, Mr. House and the Brotherhood of Steel. The path ends at Hoover Dam, where the Courier protects President Kimball during a ceremony and then reports to General Oliver.

The NCR is the closest thing the Mojave has to a democratic state, with courts, elections and a standing army. It is also overstretched and often indifferent to local needs. The Courier's NCR quests show both sides: a government that tries to help and a bureaucracy that fails.

The Boomers' quest is a good example of New Vegas' humour and depth. The Boomers are isolationists with a B-29 obsession, and winning them requires patience and respect. Their bombs at the final battle are the reward for treating them as people.

Colonel Moore's tasks show the NCR's ruthlessness. Killing House, destroying the Brotherhood or Khans means choosing stability over justice. The Courier can negotiate, but the NCR path rewards pragmatism.

En este capítuloVulpes Inculta gives the Courier the Mark of Caesar, allowing safe entry to The Fort, Caesar's camp at Fortification Hill.

On the Legion path the Courier enters The Fort with the Mark of Caesar. Caesar, impressed by the Courier's influence, orders them to destroy the Securitron vault and kill Mr. House. He also asks the Courier to handle the Boomers, the White Glove Society and the Brotherhood of Steel.

Caesar's headaches reveal a brain tumour, and the Courier can treat him. In return he asks for the assassination of President Kimball at the Hoover Dam ceremony. The Courier plants a bomb or finds another way, and then reports to Legate Lanius for the battle.

Caesar is a philosopher-tyrant. He explains his ideas with historical analogies and argues that the Legion brings order to chaos. He is dangerous because he is persuasive, and the game does not hide that his empire is built on slavery.

The tumour subplot makes Caesar human. A man who claims to be a god suffers from an ordinary disease, and the Courier's choices can save or doom him. It is one of the best examples of New Vegas' ability to humanise even its harshest characters.

The assassination of Kimball is a turning point. The Courier is a fixer for the Legion, and the plot is a coup de main to weaken the NCR. If it succeeds the NCR is without a leader on the eve of the battle.

En este capítuloMr. House upgrades his Securitrons with the Platinum Chip and sends the Courier to The Fort to wake the dormant Securitron army.

Mr. House uses the chip to upgrade his Securitrons and sends the Courier to the Fort to retrieve the dormant Securitron army hidden there. The Courier must handle House's enemies, from the Brotherhood of Steel to the Omertas, and keep Kimball safe from the Legion.

With the army ready, the Courier installs an override at the El Dorado substation and later at Hoover Dam, giving House the control he needs to win the battle.

House's path is the plan of a man who believes he has solved the problem of the Mojave. His Securitron army is a deterrent that makes New Vegas independent of both the NCR and the Legion. His vision is cold, but it promises stability and prosperity.

The Courier acts as House's agent, and the loyalty is a transaction. House gives resources and the Courier gives results. The relationship is revealing because the Courier can see House's flaws and still choose to serve him. House's ending is controversial because it makes a private ruler the guardian of the region. The Courier must decide whether a benevolent dictator is better than a democracy or an empire.

En este capítuloYes Man, Benny's Securitron, offers the Courier an independent path in which no faction controls the Mojave.

The independent path begins with Yes Man, a cheerful and servile Securitron. He explains that the Courier can control New Vegas without serving any faction, if they can remove House and gain control of the Securitrons. The Courier must visit the Fort, win over the Securitron army and prepare for a battle against all sides. Yes Man provides information and tools, but the Courier must do the work.

The Wild Card path appeals to players who distrust all factions. It offers freedom, but it requires diplomacy and force. The Courier cannot hide behind a banner; they must persuade or defeat everyone.

Yes Man's personality adds humour to a heavy storyline. He is an AI who agrees with everything, and his lack of moral guidance leaves the Courier as the only real decision-maker. It is a statement about the burden of choice. The independent ending is the riskiest. New Vegas has no ally and no guarantee of survival, but it has autonomy. The epilogue leaves the question open.

En este capítuloAt Hoover Dam General Oliver greets the Courier, the Legion attacks through the intake tunnels and the Boomers, the Khans, the Brotherhood and the Enclave Remnants appear as allies.

The battle brings all of the Courier's choices to a head. The NCR defends the Dam, the Legion attacks through the intake tunnels, and allied factions arrive depending on earlier quests. The Boomers conduct bombing runs, the Khans and Brotherhood add firepower and the Enclave Remnants arrive by Vertibird.

The Courier fights to the Legate's camp and confronts Lanius, or to the NCR's command and General Oliver. The result depends on the path: NCR victory, Legion victory, House's Securitrons or an independent New Vegas.

The battle is a test of the Courier's earlier work. The more allies the Courier gained, the stronger their side, and the quests that seemed side missions become decisive. It is a rare example of a payoff that depends on 40 hours of play.

Each ending has a distinctive tone. The NCR ending is hopeful but bureaucratic; the Legion ending is brutal and ordered; House's ending is polished and cold; the independent ending is uncertain and free. The ending slides summarise the consequences for every faction and settlement. They are as important as the battle itself, because they show the long-term effects of the Courier's decisions on towns such as Novac and Freeside.